by Barry Phegan | Nov 15, 2021 | Aging, Social comment
Over 70 years ago, as a primary school child in Sydney, I enjoyed sticking transfers — what we in the United States call a temporary tattoo — to the back of my hand. These were usually comic book characters or animals. We’d show them to friends and go “Oooh”...
by Barry Phegan | Nov 1, 2021 | Aging, Social comment
Freedom We toss the word around as if we know what it means. Each user has a meaning in mind, while listeners might have another. But I see a mounting impatience with cries for freedom intended to deflect our attention from antisocial behavior more accurately...
by Barry Phegan | Oct 15, 2021 | Aging, Social comment
My mother once recounted a story from my childhood. Just three or four years old, I had come across a dead bird, probably a sparrow, in our front yard. After examining it with earnest concern, I announced, “It’s lost all its interest.” She found that amusingly...
by Barry Phegan | Oct 3, 2021 | Aging, Social comment
Swimming Swimming in the mornings is a favorite ‘hands busy, mind free’ time. As my body swims my brain drifts, open to what floats in. Today, dying showed up. I was playing a mental game, stepping into the shoes of someone way outside my understanding (Covid...
by Barry Phegan | Sep 15, 2021 | Aging, Social comment
Some professional writers advise beginners to write about things they know. As a beginning writer, that advice got me thinking. Here’s what I know about climate change, human nature, and my job as a senior. Clocks Go Forward Fact. There is no winding back the...
by Barry Phegan | Sep 1, 2021 | Aging, Living Life
I have a long-term friend whose husband died a few years ago. When she pictures him she feels sadness and loss. When I picture him I feel his warmth, energy, and enthusiasm. I wonder what picture he would like us to have? The Invisible Walk-Ins They say it’s...
